BATU PAHAT, Oct 3 (Bernama) -- Malaysia Pro Cycling (MPC) rider Mohamad Izzat Hilmi Abdul Halil has refused to give up on his dream of securing a podium finish in the 2026 Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL), with just one stage remaining in the prestigious cycling tour.
The 30-year-old admitted that he was disappointed to miss out on a podium finish in his hometown today after finishing 16th in Stage Seven from Melaka to Batu Pahat, although he was named the best Malaysian rider.
But the Batu Pahat-born rider remains confident that he can achieve his long-standing ambition of a podium finish in tomorrow’s final stage from Muar to Putrajaya.
“I have previously finished fourth, so there is no reason why I cannot move up to second or third. The most important thing is not to give up and to do my best,” he told reporters here today.
Izzat Hilmi said he had to change his strategy during today’s stage after realising that it was difficult to close the time gap with the breakaway group, instead focusing on securing the best possible position among the Asian riders.
“From the start of the race, the pace was very fast as there were several breakaways. The four-rider breakaway group almost got caught by the peloton, but they did well to maintain their momentum until the finish.
“I tried to fight for the best position among the Asian riders in the group, but I was slightly held up at the final corner before being overtaken by the Japanese rider (Hijiri Oda) in the final 50 metres,” he added.
Izzat Hilmi’s best achievement in the prestigious tour is finishing fourth in Stage One of LTdL 2023, before repeating the feat in Stage Six of the 2025 edition.
With one final opportunity left, he is determined to go all out for the podium finish he has been chasing since 2023.
Stage Eight tomorrow, the final stage of LTdL 2026, will cover 188.3 kilometres from Muar to Putrajaya.
The closing stage features three intermediate sprint zones in Simpang Ampat, Seremban and Nilai, as well as a climb at Bukit Mantin.
-- BERNAMA
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